International News

April '10

Feature Article from Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car

Isle of Man--Manx Classic 2010
The Isle of Man has a motorsports reputation all out of proportion to its tiny size, and when a vintage car driving event takes place there, you know it's bound to be exciting. The Manx Motor Racing Club (www.manxmotorracing.com) has organized the Manx Classic 2010, a three-day Sprint and Hillclimb event, to be held on closed public roads, that offers something for everyone. The Governor's Sprint will begin at the TT Grandstand in Douglas on Thursday, April 22, at 6 p.m., and end at 10:30 on the A18 Mountain Road. Friday the 23rd will be The Sloc Hillclimb, held between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., on a portion of the A36 road. Saturday's Lhergy Frissell Hillclimb, held the same hours as the previous day's event, will run on the TT Road Racing Circuit, and will incorporate the Ramsey Hairpin, Waterworks and Gooseneck.
Regulations, entry forms, travel information and Paul Hardiman's spectacular photography of past years' events are all available online via the club's website, or by e-mailing mmrc@manx.net.
France--Peugeot's Renaissance
It's hard to believe that the Peugeot firm has been in business for 200 years, but it was indeed 1810 when Jean-Pierre II and Jean-Frédéric Peugeot converted their family flour mill into a steel foundry, and soon invented the cold-roll process of making steel. Bicycles were added to the Peugeot line of products in 1885, joining items like pepper grinders, hair clippers and steel pitchforks. The first Peugeot automobile, powered by steam, was built in 1889.
Peugeot products have worn the lion crest since 1850, and it became a registered trademark of Peugeot Fréres in 1858. The rampant lion has stood as a singular cutout since 1968, and the company has seen to simplify and update it to appear three-dimensional, along with their logotype, in honor of their bicentennial. The first production car to wear this new logo will be the Audi TT-fighting 2010 RCZ Coupé.
The automaker debuted a new concept show car, the removable hardtop convertible SR1, at the Geneva show in March, and it embodies their new corporate design language, as well as showing the new lion badge. The SR1, which features 2 + 1 interior seating, displays the HYbrid4 technology that will debut on the 2011 Peugeot 3008; in this case, it combines a 218hp, 1.6-liter high-pressure turbocharged gas engine up front with a 95hp electric motor in the rear, which can offer zero emissions and 57.7 MPG combined in electric-only mode, or a total of 313hp, with four-wheel drive and four-wheel steering. Learn more at www.peugeot.com/en.aspx.
England-South Africa--Noble Rises Again
Engineer and designer Lee Noble rose to fame with his acclaimed eponymous M12 and M400 sports cars, and he has moved on to start fresh with Fenix Automotive Limited. Noble has formed this company to build a new two-seat, mid-engine supercar--targeted to cost under £75,000 (roughly $121,000)--that he says is on track for a late 2010 introduction.
This yet-unnamed car will be powered by Corvette V-8s, either in base 480hp LS3 or supercharged 638hp LS9 (ZR1) forms; combining these engines with target curb weights of roughly 2,650 pounds means rapid acceleration, with the ZR1-powered car reaching 100 MPH in fewer than seven seconds, and topping out around 200 MPH. The car is intended to be equally at home on the road and track.
"Our first prototype is now in build, and development will start in around one month's time," Noble said in January. "We'll be hot-weather testing the first prototype on the mountain roads around Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where the car will be manufactured. But I'm itching to get the car back to the U.K., where I can set it up on roads I know well."
To keep up on the developments at Fenix Automotive, head over to their website: www.fenixautomotive.com.
Germany--The Classic Car's World Club Meeting
RetroMobile may be a bang-up start to the classic car new year in Europe, but Techno-Classica Essen makes a highly anticipated follow-up for early spring. This year's event, the 22nd such, is taking place between April 7 and 11, and as in previous iterations, it is a world-class show of vintage and classic cars, motorsports vehicles, motorcycles, spare parts and restoration specialists. Held at MESSE ESSEN, Techno-Classica will fill 20 exhibition halls and four open air areas with more than 1,000 exhibitors and prominent club displays from more than 25 different countries. In fact, its popularity keeps growing, with last year's show attracting 168,900 visitors from 41 countries.
Reflecting on 2009 and forecasting the 2010 event, Anton Leon Franssen, of Techno-Classica organizer S.I.H.A., said, "We have become more international in terms of exhibitors and visitors. Many of the sold cars are now being transported to foreign countries--some as far as Australia, Japan and South America." "The clubs are the foundation of the vintage car scene," said Horst Brüning, chairman of the world association of vintage car clubs (FIVA, Fédération des Véhicules Anciens). "At the Techno-Classica, they make a significant contribution to creating an automotive journey through the last century." For hours and entry fees, visit www.siha.de/tce_uk.php.
Italy--Concours Crown Jewel
Considered one of the most exclusive and historic concours d'elegance in the world, the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este is a historic fine car show in a stunning setting: Villa Erba, Cernobbio, on Lake Como. Dating back to 1929, this event showcases the finest cars from across Europe, and around the world. Sponsored by BMW Group, the Concorso Villa d'Este's entry fee is a surprisingly reasonable 14 Euros, or $20, and the public will be admitted on Sunday, April 25 between 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Visit www.concorsodeleganzavilladeste.com for history, images and information.

This article originally appeared in the April, 2010 issue of Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car.